2 new costly errors seen in tax returns

February 22, 1991|By Chicago Tribune

CHICAGO -- As usual, this year's taxpayers are making plenty of mistakes when they fill out their federal income tax forms. But the Internal Revenue Service says two new errors are cropping up that could prove costly if not caught by the agency or the taxpayer.

The two new errors -- there are still the usual number of addition and subtraction mistakes, missing signatures and forgotten forms -- cropping up are:

* Many self-employed filers have failed to note that, for the first time, they may reduce their gross income by taking an adjustment for half the Social Security tax they pay, according to Steve Mongelluzzo, Chicago public affairs officer for the IRS.

* Many low-income people are failing to claim the earned-income credit to which they may be entitled, he said. That credit could be as much as $953 for single taxpayer with a dependent child.

Mongelluzzo said the mistakes are slowing the processing of refunds. "We don't want to cheat people," he said.